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Identity: Chosen (Part 1)


Don’t be silent. Don’t let your neighbors enter a Godless eternity because you were too busy trying to win an argument or hide your “Living Water.” Just be a witness.

 

John 1:43-51 - 43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” 48 Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” 49 Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” 50 Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” 51 And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

 

What would you do if you stumbled upon a hidden spring of clean water in a desert village where every child is dying of thirst? Would you hoard the discovery or shout it from the rooftops because their survival depends on it? Most would share it instantly— yet many of us hoard the “Living Water,” Jesus, while billions head toward a Godless, thirsty eternity.

 

The Problem

 

Many Christians believe that Jesus is the Living Water that satisfies souls cracking under the heat of sin, yet they choose silence over sharing. They need to know that we were chosen before the foundation of the earth and were called to be His witnesses. If they fail, they ignore our primary purpose. Ezekiel 3:18-19 warns the “watchman”: if you fail to warn the wicked, God holds you accountable for their blood. This means witnessing. Evangelism is not about results; it is about our responsibility to the call for which we were chosen. We are chosen and called to be His witnesses.

 

This responsibility has been the focus of our study of John 1:19-51. John the Baptist was chosen and called to serve as a witness. That was his identity. In John 1:37-42, Andrew, the unnamed disciple, and Peter were chosen and called to be His witnesses. That became their identity. As we reach the final verses in this section, John 1:43-51, we see that this calling— being chosen to be His witnesses— is at the heart of the Gospel identity.

 

The Big Idea

 

Your true identity doesn't start with who you think you are; it begins with whether you answer the call to which you were chosen. This is why, in the Gospel, identity is not self-created or discovered— it is conferred and received.

 

For the chosen, calling precedes identity and becomes identity. The question is, how is it different from cultural identity, whether traditional or modern? The answer is, in every way.

 

Culture tells you to find, express, and define yourselves; prove your worth and justify your existence.

 

But in gospel identity, you are chosen and called and not forsaken because you are worth so much that God sent His Son to come into this world and die for your sins to secure your salvation. That is what we see in Philip and Nathanael’s calling in John 1:43–51 as it unfolds three dynamic rhythms of Christ’s call: His calling reaches, reads, and raises us. Today, we will cover the first one.

 

His Calling Reaches Us (John 1:43-46)

 

In our time, the only way I know that His calling reaches us is through His Word. In John 1:43-46, the focus shifts from renaming Peter to summoning Philip to shape his identity. John 1:43-44 ESV reads,

“43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.”  

 

Notice the verbs: Jesus decided, He found, and He said; that means Christ did it all. Philip didn’t wake up and decide to “find himself” or “find God.” God decided to go after Him. Salvation is not a game of hide-and-seek where God is hiding; it is a rescue mission where God is reaching. The text shows, Jesus reached him first and with Christ came the calling for which he was chosen before the foundation of the world. This is the doctrine of election with feet on it and His call was, akolutheo, “Follow me”

 

This isn’t a polite suggestion. It is the New Testament echo of the Old Testament Hebrew halak achar— to “walk after.” In Deuteronomy 13:4, Israel was commanded, “walk after the Lord your God,” a call to devotion, obedience, and covenant faithfulness. It meant to reorient direction, allegiance, and destiny.

 

All four Gospels focus on this call and command to follow Jesus and emphasize on discipleship.

  • Matthew shows us the cost of discipleship as we follow Jesus (4:20, 10:38, 19:2, and 19:28).

  • Mark shows us the cross as we follow Jesus (8:34). It requires self-denial.

  • Luke shows us the urgency to follow Jesus in discipleship.

  • John shows us the relationship between the Shepherd and His sheep in the process of discipleship. We see that in John 10:4 and 10:27, where His sheep follow Him because they hear and know His voice.

 

Gospel Identity Principle


When His calling reaches you, you are no longer self-directed. You are summoned. Your destiny doesn’t start when you achieve your goals; it starts when you submit to His voice.

 

As soon as Philip is reached, like Andrew, he also reached out. John 1:45 says, “Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”” He, too, exemplifies the urgency as he went out and found someone whom he considered important. In Andrew’s case, evangelism started with close family members, and in Philip’s case, it expanded to friends and colleagues.

 

Notice what happens next in John 1:46, “Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”” because when you do a historical study of Nazareth, you can’t find any mention of it in any major Jewish text or writing, which prompts its insignificance. It was a small village in Galilee, some 55 miles north of Jerusalem. We do find evidence that the Galileans were looked down upon by Judeans, for they were considered less sophisticated and influenced by Gentile culture; therefore, we can only imagine how much worse it must have been for Nazarenes, who were looked down upon by other Galileans.

 

It is like New Yorkers making fun of one of the less-favored boroughs. So, anything coming out of Nazareth must have been seen with suspicion and disdain. This makes perfect sense as to why Nathanael, who seems to be from Galilee, is so skeptical of Philip’s discovery. Notice how Philip handles the skepticism. No argument, no explanation, the verse says, Philip said to him, “Come and see,” the same phrase Jesus used when He invited Andrew and the other unnamed disciple to experience His presence.

 

Evangelism Spiritual Principle

 

Unless people come and see Jesus, they will not be convinced of His divine position. You cannot argue someone into the Kingdom, but you can invite them to the King.

 

Recently, a skeptic wanted to debate the divinity of Christ. I asked, “Do you want to hear what God’s Word teaches, or do you want to argue?” It was clear that he wanted to argue, so I walked away. It's not that I am afraid of debates; as a matter of fact, it’s the opposite (I am so good at arguing that my wife says she cannot win an argument with me).

 

I am afraid that, in my effort to win the argument, I may lose my witness. You see a long time ago; I realized that I’d rather win a soul than win a debate. There are billions of people who need Jesus and I have very limited time on earth. I want to share the Word of God and not my opinion, methods, smarts or arguments.

 

Application

 

When it comes to evangelism, don’t try to argue people into Christianity. At best, it creates disdain for you, the evangelist, and at worst, it does more harm than good. The only way to convince someone of Christ’s divine position and His power is to confront him with Christ.

 

I have not seen skeptics being convinced and converted by argumentative and philosophical preaching and teaching, but by the presentation of the gospel. The Gospel saves because only Christ crucified, risen, and coming again can confront, convince, and convert people. When Christ’s calling reaches Philip, it confronts, convinces, and converts him into a disciple who will evangelize others. When Nathanael is confronted with Christ, he, too, converts.

 

Closing Thought

 

As I close, I want us to remember our job is not to convert people, but to call them to come and see Jesus. When they are confronted by Christ, they, too, learn that we are chosen and called to receive, not achieve, the identity we were created for and our soul longs for: to be His witnesses.

 

Therefore, before we find Him, He finds us; before we come to Him, He reaches us because He loves us. First John 4:19 says, “we love because He first loved us” and Romans 5:8 says, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

 

Action Step

 

Follow Him. That is the identity your soul is screaming for. That is the call to which you were chosen for and that is the identity that your soul longs for. This is our eighth week examining how identity is received, and not achieved because nothing we can achieve can fill the “God-shaped hole” in our hearts. We try to fill the “emptiness” in our souls with more: more degrees, more promotions, more “likes” on social media.

 

It’s like trying to fill a canyon with a saltshaker. Nothing fits because your soul was designed for the call to which you were chosen before the foundation of the earth. Romans 8:30 NLT says, “And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.”

 

Appeal

 

Don’t be silent. Don’t let your neighbors enter a Godless eternity because you were too busy trying to win an argument or hide your “Living Water.” Be like Philip. Be like Andrew. Find someone this week and don't try to be an answer to every question, don’t be argumentative, and don’t try to be “smart”— just be a witness.

 

Say, “Come and see.” Church history repeatedly shows that the greatest spiritual movements often begin with simple relational invitations. One person brings another. A friend says, “Come with me.” Entire revivals trace back to quiet Andrews and Philips, who never preached to thousands but faithfully brought one who would preach to thousands. Andrews and Philips are rarely the spotlight figure in the Gospels. Let’s me give you an example.

 

Have you heard the name Mordecai Ham? He was an evangelist. A story is told that Mordecai Ham was holding a series of evangelistic tent meetings in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1934 when two 16-year-olds came. They saw the tent was packed and attempted to leave. An unnamed usher intervened and insisting on finding them seats. This pivotal, faithful act allowed them to hear the message that changed their lives. One of those boys was the man we know as Billy Graham who ended up preaching the gospel to more people than anyone else has ever preached— millions of people. That one man, not Billy Graham nor Mordecai Ham, but the usher, the unnamed usher changed generations. Be that unnamed usher, make room for the seekers.

 

Inductive Bible Study: Observation, Interpretation, Application

 

 

Observation: What Does the Text Say?

 

  1. What specific actions does Jesus take in John 1:43? List the verbs used in the passage.

     

  2. What command does Jesus give Philip?

     

  3. What do we learn about Philip in John 1:44?

     

  4. After encountering Jesus, what is the very first thing Philip does?

     

  5. How does Philip describe Jesus to Nathanael in John 1:45?

     

  6. How does Philip respond to Nathanael’s skepticism?

 

Interpretation: What Does the Text Mean?

 

  1. What does it reveal about Jesus that He finds Philip first rather than Philip seeking Him?

     

  2. Why might the command “Follow me” be more than just an invitation? What does it imply about discipleship?

     

  3. Why do you think Philip immediately goes to tell Nathanael after meeting Jesus?


  4. What does Philip’s description of Jesus (“him of whom Moses and the prophets wrote”) reveal about his understanding of Jesus?

     

  5. What can we learn from Philip’s response, “Come and see,” instead of arguing or defending his claim?

     

  6. What does this passage suggest about the relationship between encountering Christ and sharing Christ?

 

Application: What Does the Text Require of Us?

 

  1. When you think about your own spiritual journey, how did Christ’s call first reach you?

     

  2. What does it look like in everyday life to truly follow Jesus rather than simply admire Him?

     

  3. Think of someone in your life who may be skeptical about Christianity. How could you respond in a way similar to Philip?

     

  4. Instead of arguing about faith, what are some practical ways we can invite people to “come and see” Jesus?

     

  5. Who is one person God may be prompting you to reach this week with the message of Christ?

     

  6. What is one step you can take this week to be more intentional about sharing the gospel?


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